Public Treasury Medal – National School of Treasury Services – Marne-la-Vallée 1978 – Signed by Stephan Buxin
In bronze
Weight: 136.3 g
Diameter: 63.5 mm
Obverse:
Buildings of the National School of Treasury Services , inaugurated on June 22, 1978 by Valéry Giscard d’Estaing ( Inauguration speech at the bottom of the description. ) Architect: Bernard de la Tour d’Auvergne.
Inscription:
Ecole Nationale
des Services
du Trésor
Featured: MARNE-LA-VALLÉE 1978
Signatures:
Architect _ B. de la Tour d’Auvergne
S. Buxin
Reverse:
Text at the center: Public Treasury
on a background made up of gears bearing the inscriptions:
French Payroll ; Public Accounting Department ; General Treasuries ; Television License ; Collections ; Collections (a 2nd time) ; Finance Revenue ; Main Treasuries ; Revenue Collections .
In ribbons , the inscriptions:
CONTROLE ET PAIEMENT DES DÉPENSES ; ÉCONOMIE RÉGIONALE ; EMPRUNTS PUBLICS ; COMPTES DE L’ÉTAT ; FINANCES DES COLLECTIVITÉS LOCALES ; RECOUVREMENT DE L’IMPOT DIRECT.
Edge:
1978 + Cornucopia hallmark (Paris Mint) + BRONZE
Inaugural speech of June 22, 1978:
MR. MINISTER OF THE BUDGET, MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT, AND IN PARTICULAR THE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF SEINE-ET-MARNE, MR. PREFECT, MUNICIPAL ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES, GENTLEMEN RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PUBLIC ESTABLISHMENT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE USUAL FATE OF A PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC IS TO INAUGURATE ACHIEVEMENTS IN WHICH HE HAS TOOK LITTLE PART. AND THIS IS WHY I AM WELCOMED BY THIS EVENT TODAY, SINCE THE ESSENTIAL DECISIONS CONCERNING THE CREATION AND ESTABLISHMENT OF THIS NATIONAL SCHOOL OF THE TREASURY SERVICE WERE TAKEN BY THE MINISTER OF THE ECONOMY AND FINANCE AT THE TIME. FATE HAS ALLOWED ME TO INAUGURATE TODAY IN REAL GRANDEUR THIS SCHOOL, WHICH I ONLY KNEW BY ITS PLANS WHEN, A FEW YEARS AGO, WE MADE THE ESSENTIAL DECISIONS, WITH A CERTAIN NUMBER OF COLLABORATORS, WHOM I AM HAPPY TO MEET AGAIN FOR THIS EVENT. I HAD BEEN STRUCK BY THE STATE OF DISREPAIR, AND THIS WORD IS AN UNDERSTATING, OF THE PREMISES IN WHICH THE STUDENTS OF THIS IMPORTANT ADMINISTRATION OF FRANCE HAD UNTIL NOW RECEIVED THEIR TEACHING. ALSO THE CREATION OF A NATIONAL SCHOOL AND ITS INSTALLATION REQUIRED TWO IMPORTANT DECISIONS FROM THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AT THE TIME, WHICH WERE ON THE ONE HAND THE CHOICE OF THE SITE AND ON THE OTHER HAND THE CHOICE OF THE ARCHITECT
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FOR THE CHOICE OF THE SITE, THERE WAS FIRST THE QUESTION OF PRINCIPLE OF KNOWING WHETHER THIS SCHOOL SHOULD BE MAINTAINED IN THE PARIS REGION OR IF ON THE CONTRARY, LIKE OTHER LARGE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS, IT WAS APPROPRIATE TO SEEK A PROVINCIAL LOCATION. FOLLOWING VERY CAREFUL STUDIES CONCERNING THE NATURE OF THE TEACHING, THE CONTACTS THAT MUST BE ESTABLISHED WITH A CERTAIN NUMBER OF ENVIRONMENTS, THE PUBLIC SERVICE, AND FINANCIAL CIRCUITS, IT APPEARED DESIRABLE TO RETAIN THE PARIS REGION AND THIS NEW TOWN OF MARNE-LA-VALLEE BECAUSE OF THE FINANCIAL VOCATION THAT HAS BEEN ASSIGNED TO IT. IT ALSO APPEARED TO ME DESIRABLE TO MAKE A DECISION TO ESTABLISH A BETTER BALANCE BETWEEN THE WEST AND EAST OF THE PARIS REGION, AND TO CONTRIBUTE TO GIVING THE EAST OF THE PARIS REGION ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR DEVELOPMENT. MARNE-LA-VALLEE IS NOT A NEW CITY LIKE THE OTHERS, AND YOU CAN SEE THIS AS SOON AS YOU ENTER A BUILDING LIKE THIS AND WHEN YOU FLY OVER THE ENTIRE CITY. IT IS AN ECOLOGICAL CITY WHERE THE QUALITY OF URBANIZATION AND THE LIVING ENVIRONMENT HAS BEEN CONSIDERED A PRIORITY OBJECTIVE. MARNE-LA-VALLEE IS IN FACT A SUCCESSION OF SMALL URBAN UNITS SURROUNDED BY LARGELY PROTECTED GREEN SPACES WHICH MAKE UP A THIRD OF THE URBANIZATION AREA, A PROPORTION WITHOUT EQUIVALENT FOR A CITY OF THIS IMPORTANCE. THE NEIGHBORHOOD VERY CLOSE TO THE ARCHE GUEDON IN PARTICULAR IS A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THIS FRENCH-STYLE URBAN PLANNING THAT WE ARE SEEKING TO DEVELOP. AN URBAN PLANNING DESIGNED BASED ON THE DAILY CONCERNS OF THE RESIDENTS, AND WHERE EACH DETAIL IS STUDIED WITH AS MUCH CARE AS THE OVERALL PLAN. THIS IS WHY WE WERE CONCERNED WITH INSTALLING THE TREASURY STUDENTS IN THIS CITY WHERE I WILL SIMPLY SAY THAT THERE WILL BE MORE NUMEROUS GARDENERS THAN ROAD MAKERS
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IF CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURE WILL WELCOME THEM TO PREPARE THEM TO THINK ABOUT THE PROBLEMS OF OUR TIME, THEY WILL ALSO FIND CLOSE BY HERE MEMORIES THAT REMEMBER OUR GREATEST FINANCIAL TRADITIONS: THE NEIGHBOURING COMMUNES OF TORCY AND CROISSY HAVE SEEN THE SPLENDOUR OF THE FAMILY AND DESCENDANCE OF COLBERT. AND SINCE THE YOUNG PEOPLE WHO COME HERE WILL HAVE, LIKE ALL THE OTHERS, THEIR SHARE OF DREAMS, I THINK THEY WILL NOT BE INDIFFERENT TO THE FACT OF STARTING THEIR CAREERS “ON THE GUERMANTES SIDE”. THE SECOND DECISION HAD CONCERNED THE CHOICE OF THE ARCHITECT, AND MR. FARGE REMEMBERS IT AS WELL AS THE DIRECTORS OF THE FINANCE BUILDING SERVICES AT THE TIME. THIS CHOICE HAD FALLEN ON BERNARD DE LA TOUR D’AUVERGNE. A STUDENT OF AUGUSTE PERRET, A TEACHER HIMSELF, HE HAD IN FACT DISTINGUISHED HIMSELF BY A PARTICULAR TASTE AND TALENT FOR THE DESIGN OF EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. THE NATIONAL TAX SCHOOL OF CLERMONT-FERRAND WITH WHICH HE HAD COLLABORATED, THE EUROPEAN INSTITUTE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, THE EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR PERMANENT EDUCATION IN FONTAINEBLEAU MARKED HIS TOO SHORT CAREER. EACH OF HIS WORKS, LIKE HIS STUDIES ON THE RENOVATION OF THE HALLES OF PARIS, BEAR TESTIMONY OF A GREAT CREATOR’S TEMPERAMMENT. HERE AGAIN, HE HAS ACHIEVED THAT DELICATE BALANCE BETWEEN THE TWO QUALITIES WHICH ARE AT THE HEART OF FRENCH GENIUS BUT WHICH ARE UNFORTUNATELY RARELY SEEN COMBINED IN THE SAME MAN, THE SENSE OF SIMPLICITY AND THAT OF GRANDEUR. SIMPLICITY IN SUBMISSION TO THE SITE, IN THE DESIRED SOBRIETY OF THE ARCHITECTURAL LINES, IN THE FUNCTIONAL ARRANGEMENT OF THE VOLUMES. BUT ALSO GRANDEUR AND AMPLE OF THE OVERALL DESIGN BECAUSE THIS BUILDING HAS THE APPEARANCE OF A SHIP
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DECEASED AT THE AGE OF CREATIVE MATURITY, BERNARD DE LA TOUR D’AUVERGNE WAS ABLE TO GIVE HERE THE LAST EXAMPLE OF HIS TALENT. TO THIS MAN, TO THIS FRIEND WHOM I HAD PARTICULAR ESTIMATE, I WANTED TO PAY HERE A PERSONAL TRIBUTE. WE ALSO OWE THE SUCCESS OF THIS ACHIEVEMENT TO MR. COSTANTINI, STUDENT AND ASSISTANT OF LA TOUR D’AUVERGNE, WHO CONTINUED AND COMPLETED THE WORK INTERRUPTED BY THE DEATH OF THE AUTHOR OF THE PROJECT. AND I WILL NOT FORGET THAT THE QUALITY OF THE ARCHITECTURE DOES NOT ONLY DEPEND ON THE TALENT OF THE PROJECT MANAGER BUT ALSO ON THAT OF THE CONTRACTING AUTHORITY JEAN FARGE, WHO MARKED THE TREASURY SERVICES WITH HIS STRONG AND WARM PERSONALITY FOR MANY YEARS, WAS ABLE TO DESIGN A CLEAR AND RIGOROUS ARCHITECTURAL PROGRAM FOR THIS SCHOOL. I ADD FINALLY, AS THE MINISTER OF THE BUDGET `MAURICE PAPON` REMINDED ME, THAT THE INITIAL EVALUATIONS OF THE PROJECT WERE RESPECTED WHATEVER THE DEVELOPMENTS THAT MAY HAVE OCCURRED IN ITS REALIZATION
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THIS SCHOOL IS A WITNESSES OF THE YOUTH AND VITALITY OF A GREAT PUBLIC SERVICE, WHICH, BY REMAINING FAITHFUL TO ITS TRADITIONS, KNOWS HOW TO ADAPT TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF OUR TIME AND TO THE NEEDS OF THE FRENCH. THE PUBLIC TREASURY IS AN EXEMPLARY ADMINISTRATION, I WOULD SAY THAT IT IS AN ELITE ADMINISTRATION, BY ITS TRADITIONS OF COMPETENCE, RIGOR AND DEDICATION. RESPONSIBLE FOR MANAGING A NETWORK WHOSE PROPER FUNCTIONING IS ESSENTIAL TO THE VERY LIFE OF THE NATION – AND WORRIED THAT, WHATEVER THE RISKS OF OUR HISTORY, THIS SERVICE IS NEVER INTERRUPTED – IT PROVIDES ITS CIVIL SERVANTS WITH VERY HIGH QUALITY TRAINING, USING THE MOST DEMANDING AND SKILLED TECHNIQUES. WITH THIS NEW SCHOOL, IT IS NOW EQUIPPED WITH AN EXCEPTIONAL INSTRUMENT, IMPLEMENTING THE MOST MODERN METHODS AND TEACHING MEANS. THERE IS A REMNANT OF THE BLACKBOARD £ I HAD CONSIDERED WRITING SOME EQUATIONS ON IT BUT THIS DOESN’T APPEAR IN MY TEXT… NEVERTHELESS AS I WALKING AROUND THE PREMISES JUST NOW I SAW THAT THE MOST ADVANCED AUDIOVISUAL TECHNIQUES WILL BE USED FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF TEACHING
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AT THE SAME TIME AS KNOWLEDGE, ESSENTIAL TO THE FULL EXERCISE, TO THE FULL DEVELOPMENT OF THE CAPACITIES OF TREASURY AGENTS, THIS NEW SCHOOL MUST ALSO TRANSMIT TO STUDENTS TRADITIONS ESTABLISHED AND ILLUSTRATED BY THEIR FOREIGNERS. A TRADITION OF RIGOR, FIRST OF ALL, IN ITS SENSE OF DISCIPLINE BASED ON PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY, WHICH WE WISH TO DEVELOP IN FRENCH SOCIETY, AND WHICH IS WIDELY EXERCISED BY ACCOUNTANTS AND TREASURY AGENTS. THIS TRADITION MUST REMAIN THE SECOND NATURE OF THE TREASURY OFFICIALS WHO ARE CHARGED WITH THE FORMIDABLE AND DIFFICULT HONOR OF SCRUPULOUSLY GUARDING PUBLIC FUNDS AND OF RENDERING, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAW, “SINCERE AND TRUE” ACCOUNTS. RIGOR AND RESPONSIBILITY CONSTITUTE THE CONDITIONS OF A JOB WELL DONE. I HOPE THAT THIS TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE, WHICH DEEPLY MARKS THE TREASURY ADMINISTRATION, WILL BE PERPETUATED WITHIN THIS SCHOOL AS IT MUST ALSO BE AFFIRMED IN ALL AREAS OF OUR NATIONAL ACTIVITY. A TRADITION, FINALLY, OF DEDICATION TO PUBLIC SERVICE. HAVING WITNESSED IT DIRECTLY, EITHER AS A FINANCE INSPECTOR AT THE BEGINNING OF MY CAREER OR LATER IN THE RESPONSIBILITIES I HAVE ASSUMED, I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO MEASURE THE QUALITY OF THIS DEDICATION OF THE TREASURY ACCOUNTANTS AND ALL OF THEIR COLLABORATORS. I ALSO KNOW THE EFFORT IT REPRESENTS AND THE PERSONAL COURAGE IT SOMETIMES REQUIRES FROM THESE 55,000 `NUMBER` MEN AND WOMEN AGENTS, TOO OFTEN FACED WITH UNFAIR CRITICISM, COWARDLY AND DESPICABLE EXACTIONS, OR EVEN THE VIOLENCE OF BANDITISM. SINCE I HAVE BEEN GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS THEM THROUGH YOU, I WANT TO PUBLICLY RENEW MY TOTAL CONFIDENCE IN THEM. LET THEM KNOW THAT THE HEAD OF STATE, WHO HAS LONG DIRECTED THEIR ACTION, RECOGNIZES AND APPRECIATES THEIR DEDICATION, THEIR SENSE OF DUTY AND PUBLIC SERVICE. THE COMPETENT MINISTERS HAVE ALSO BEEN GIVEN THE MISSION TO FIRMLY ENSURE THEIR DEFENSE AND SECURITY.
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THIS NEW SCHOOL ALSO SEEMS TO ME TO SYMBOLIZE THE WIDE OPENING OF THE PUBLIC TREASURY TO TODAY’S WORLD. THE FACE OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTING HAS WITHOUT DOUBT CHANGED MORE IN THE PAST 15 YEARS? MR. DIRECTOR, IS IT TWENTY YEARS? THAN IT HAD DONE IN THE PREVIOUS 150 YEARS. IT IS FIRST AND FOREMOST WITH THE CONCERN OF OFFERING NEW FACILITIES TO USERS THAT THIS MODERNIZATION EFFORT MUST BE CONTINUED. FIRST OF ALL, THE TREASURY MUST, LIKE ALL ADMINISTRATIONS IN DIRECT AND DAILY CONTACT WITH THE PUBLIC, ESTABLISH A NEW TYPE OF RELATIONSHIP, MORE HUMAN, MORE CONFIDENT WITH USERS. I KNOW THAT THE TREASURY SERVICES, USED TO COMBINING PUNCTUALITY OF COLLECTION WITH UNDERSTANDING INDIVIDUAL SITUATIONS, ARE ALREADY ENGAGED IN THIS PATH AND THAT APPRECIABLE AND, MOREOVER, RECOGNIZED RESULTS HAVE BEEN OBTAINED. I AM ALSO AWARE OF THE EXPERIENCES THAT THE TREASURY’S EXTERNAL SERVICES, IN LIAISON WITH THE OTHER FINANCIAL SERVICES, ARE CURRENTLY CONDUCTING IN SEVERAL REGIONS UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE GENERAL DIRECTORATE OF RELATIONS WITH THE PUBLIC. ALL THESE EFFORTS MUST BE CONTINUED, EXTENDED AND DEVELOPED. AND I HOPE THAT WHAT IS AT THE PRESENT LOCALIZED EXPERIENCES FOR FINANCIAL SERVICES WILL BECOME AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, AS WIDELY AS POSSIBLE, THE DAILY REALITY OF ALL ADMINISTRATIONS HAVING RELATIONS WITH THE PUBLIC
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THE PUBLIC TREASURY IS ALSO CALLED ON TO PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE BY ADAPTING THE STRUCTURE OF ITS ACCOUNTING NETWORK TO THE ECONOMIC AND DEMOGRAPHIC DEVELOPMENTS IN OUR COUNTRY. AN OLD PROBLEM, LONGLY DEBATED WITHIN THE TREASURY SERVICES, IN THE CENTRAL ADMINISTRATION OF THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE AND TODAY I IMAGINE IN THAT OF THE MINISTRY OF THE BUDGET. BUT THE RECENT EVOLUTION OF A CERTAIN NUMBER OF DATA ALLOWS US TO LOOK AT THIS PROBLEM FROM A SLIGHTLY NEW PERSPECTIVE. BECAUSE WE MUST AIM NOT AT ONE OBJECTIVE, WHICH WE HAVE SOMETIMES IMAGINED, BUT AT TWO OBJECTIVES. FIRST OF ALL, IN URBAN AREAS, WE MUST INCREASE THE POINTS OF CONTACT WITH THE PUBLIC, AND THEREFORE IMPROVE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SERVICES. WE MUST ALSO PRESERVE IN RURAL AREAS A SUFFICIENTLY DENSE INSTALLATION SO THAT THE TREASURY AGENT, THE TAX COLLECTOR, REMAINS A FAMILIAR FIGURE IN THE FRENCH REGIONS. AT THE PRESENT TIME, WE MUST NOT SACRIFICE ONE OF THESE CONCEPTIONS FOR THE OTHER, BUT SEEK A HARMONIOUS BALANCE. THIS PRESENCE OF A PERCEPTION IN RURAL AREAS CAN IN FACT BOTH FACILITATE THE MAINTENANCE AND DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES AND CONTRIBUTE TO THE DECENTRALIZATION OF SKILLS AND THE PROMOTION OF LOCAL INITIATIVES DUE TO THE ADVISORY ROLE PLAYED IN THIS REGARD BY TREASURY ACCOUNTANTS
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I WOULD NOT LIKE TO CONCLUDE, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WITHOUT MENTIONING THE CONTRIBUTION THAT THE NEW SCHOOL IS CALLED TO MAKE TO FRANCE’S ASSISTANCE TO FRIENDLY DEVELOPING NATIONS, AND ON THIS OCCASION I WELCOME THE PRESENCE OF SEVERAL AMBASSADORS FROM FRIENDLY COUNTRIES. IN FACT, FOR THE PAST 30 YEARS, MORE THAN 1,000 FOREIGN STUDENTS, THE MAJORITY OF WHOM THEY COME FROM FRENCH-SPEAKING AFRICAN COUNTRIES, HAVE FRATERNIZED WITH FRENCH STUDENTS WHOSE TEACHING THEY HAVE SHARED. I WISH THAT THIS VERY USEFUL FORM OF COOPERATION WILL CONTINUE AND DEVELOP, WHICH I WAS ABLE TO VERIFY ON SITE CREATED CLOSE PERSONAL LINKS BETWEEN THOSE WHO, COMING FROM THE SAME SCHOOL, HAD LEARNED THE SAME RULES OF ADMINISTRATION AND WORK. THE NATIONAL SCHOOL OF TREASURY SERVICES WAS UNTIL NOW POORLY INSTALLED IN MAKESHOP PREMISES. TODAY IT HAS FINALLY FOUND A LOCATION WORTHY OF ITSELF AND OF THOSE IT WELCOMES. I HOPE THAT IT WILL EXPERIENCE A LONG PERIOD OF FULFILLMENT AND THAT IT WILL PROVIDE TREASURY STAFF WITH TRAINING THAT CAN RECONCILE RESPECT FOR THE TRADITIONS THAT MAKE THEIR QUALITY, AND THE NECESSARY OPENNESS TO THE REALITIES OF THE WORLD TODAY. WHEN I WAS GOING THROUGH IT JUST NOW, I WAS SAYING TO MYSELF THAT THIS SCHOOL WILL HAVE THE PRIVILEGE OF ACHIEVING ONE OF THE AMBITIONS OF OUR CIVILIZATION IN ITS GREEK ORIGIN. BECAUSE OF THE OBVIOUS AESTHETIC EFFORT THAT PRESIDED OVER ITS CREATION AND ITS ASPIRATION AND TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE QUALITY OF THE TEACHING AND TRAINING THAT WILL BE DISTRIBUTED, I THINK THAT THIS SCHOOL WILL ACHIEVE THE ALLIANCE OF BEAUTY AND EXACTNESS
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